Sudan's Half-Revolution

The American Interest published on 3 May 2019 an analysis titled "Sudan's Half-Revolution" by Omar Al-Turabi, Dubai-based Al-Mesbar Studies and Research Center.

The author reviews the background of the on-going revolution in Sudan and concludes that much will depend on the four following key variables: the war in Darfur, the incomplete democratic transformation, the uncertain harmonization of the Transitional Military Council and political forces, and the worrying economic future.

Background on 1995 Failed Assassination Attempt of Egyptian President

Oxy.com posted on 27 April 2018 a report titled "The Failed Assassination Bid that Ended Al-Qaeda's Stint in Sudan" by Charu Sudan Kasturi.

The article provides background on the attempted assassination in 1995 of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak while he was attending the Organization of African Unity summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and the forced departure in 1996 from Sudan of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

The Muslim Brotherhood in Tunisia, Egypt and Sudan

The International Security Program at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard published in September 2017 a study titled "The Muslim Brotherhood Movement in the Arab Winter" by Stig Jarle Hansen, Mohamed Husein Gaas, and Ida Bary.

The study maps the three most important Brotherhood-influenced organizations in Egypt, Tunisia, and Sudan. It concludes that the Muslim Brotherhood is diverse and fragmented but its ideology will remain a significant political force.

The Islamic Movement in Sudan

The May 2017 issue of Prism includes an article titled "Islam from the Cold: A Muslim Brother's Reflections on the Past, Present, and Future of the Islamic Movement in the Sudan" by Marie Besancon, Portland State University.

Following the death of Hassan al-Turabi, Sayyed Ahmed Abdul Rahman Mohamed Ahmed has emerged as the elder statesman of the Muslim Brotherhood in Sudan. This article assesses the Muslim Brothers in Sudan as it emerges from the Hassan al-Turabi period.

Sudan over the Past Year

The Rift Valley Institute published on 25 May 2016 an overview titled "This Year in Sudan" by Douglas Johnson and Guma Kunda Komey. It summarizes key political and economic developments in Sudan over the past year.

Sudan: Survival of the National Congress Party

The International Crisis Group (ICG) published on 21 March 2016 a study titled "Sudan's Islamists: From Salvation to Survival."  It offers an analysis of the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) in the wake of the death of Sudan's leading Islamist, Hassan al-Turabi.

The ICG argues that in the absence of younger, credible Islamists to replace al-Turabi, the movement has been in terminal decline since he left the government in the late 1990s.  President Omar al-Bashir's strengthening of power around a small number of senior politicians, the military and security services has accompanied development of a more pragmatic government focused on regime survival.  At the same time, the NCP's shift from radical Islamism in its early days to more pragmatic politics has not been matched by normalization of relations with the West and it has looked to alternatives in the Gulf States, China, and India. 

This report is also available in Arabic.

Sudan: Legacy of Hassan Al-Turabi

The International Crisis Group published on 10 March 2016 a commentary titled "Hassan al-Turabi's Islamist Legacy in Sudan" by Magnus Taylor. 


Taylor says al-Turabi will be remembered for the role he played in the Islamization of Sudan's laws and the formation of the Popular Arab and Islamic Congress (PAIC).

Sudan: Death of Hassan Al-Turabi

Sudan's best known Islamist, Hassan al-Turabi, died at the age of 84.  In and out of government for decades, he founded the National Islamic Front and later the Popular Congress Party.  Aljazeera's report of his death is very different than the one from CNN.

I first met al-Turabi in 1983 when assigned to the American embassy in Khartoum and saw him sporadically until 2007.  He was an engaging individual.  I respected his intelligence even if his philosophy troubled me. 

Sudan: Hassan Al-Turabi Makes Another U-Turn?

Asharq Al-Awsat published on 13 February 2015 an opinion piece titled "The Mystery That Is Hassan Al-Turabi" by Osman Mirghani, former deputy editor of Asharq Al-Awsat.  Turabi is now 83, has been the leader of Sudan's Muslim Brotherhood faction for most of his adult life, and has been in and out of jail over that same period.

Mirghani focuses on a speech al-Turabi recently gave in the presence of President Omar al-Bashir.  Al-Turbi urged a return to dialogue with the al-Bashir government after a falling out in 1999.  Mirghani says al-Turabi's recent actions may mark a U-turn whereby he wants his followers to reach an accord with the government.  Others see a new conspiracy by Sudan's Islamists.  Whatever the goal, Omar al-Bashir seems certain to prevail in office this year for another five year term.